Living a Creative Life

Tag Archives: reflection

I was leery of publishing my post from yesterday, but I’m glad I did. Once I hit publish and closed my computer, I didn’t think much about the situation. I watched TV as the puppies played until it was time to get ready for an Urban Sketching workshop.

For every down in life, there’s an up. The workshop was great fun, and I was able to catch up with friends I hadn’t seen in 6 months, or more. There were some new faces and I hope they begin to attend our Urban Sketching meetup. We’re a small group right now but we’re also less than a year old.

After sketching at the workshop, I sketched some more at home in the evening, finished up a Buddha painting I plan on hanging in my meditation/yoga room. I’ll post photos of it to Instagram this evening when it’s hanging.

I try to stay positive, and present a sparkly rainbow bunny to others, but I think squashing down those instances of frustration and anger cause them to brew and bubble. Festering like an infection that you ignore until amputation is required. I don’t intend to become a chronic complainer but speaking my truth in all aspects of emotions. Events yesterday were good, and I enjoyed myself. Honestly, events on Saturday were good with the exception of a few interactions.

My intention for this week is to speak my truth, and work on being heard when in a group. If I feel I need to be heard. It is more fun to observe and note how others interact.

If I’m not consistent with my blog posts, I am consistent about doing a year-end post. Unfortunately, those were all on my previous blog and now lost. Probably for the best.

I noticed on my Facebook Memories for Dec 31st, there’s a common theme of “this year sucked, I’m ready to get it over with”. I could say this year is no different, but instead of focusing on the bad things that happened, and there have been a LOT of challenges this year, I want to focus on the things that were good about 2017.

I started with a new company in January 2017, finally getting out of the unstable oil & gas industry.

With the various deaths in my family, my cousins & I got together for a dinner for the first time ever. I would like to this to become a regular thing.

I’ve also become more at peace with death and dying, and how people grieve in their own ways.

I started sketching in public and now our little group is an offical Urban Sketchers chapter.

I started geocaching again, and recently hit my 230th find.

We got our 2nd corgi, Vision. It’s been fun to watch him & Jarvis play and wrestle.

My daughter self published a book.

My oldest son returned to school for automotive maintenance.

My youngest son enlisted in the Marines.

I finished 21 books.

I finished 2 sketchbooks.

We have a roof, food and water, and clothing.

I’m reasonably healthy.

I’m sure next year’s Obligatory End of the Year post will have a longer list. I’m going to work on focusing on the good that happens daily, and keep a daily Gratitude Journal.

I was thinking of what my focus word will be for 2018, and I did one of those quizzes that analyzes your Facebook page, and the word given to me was Family. That is fitting for 2018 so I’ll stick with it.

So farewell 2017. I’ve learned a lot from you and look forward to 2018.